The present invention relates to an alignment adjusting device and more particularly to an alignment adjusting device for a vehicle adapted to adjust the toe of a wheel in a suspension of an automobile.
Conventional alignment adjusting devices used for adjusting the toe of a wheel mounted on a suspension arm in a suspension of an automobile are substantially similar to the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,917,308 as follows.
Guide plates respectively having guide walls are fixed to a pair of brackets spaced from each other and projecting from a chassis so that said guide walls are outside the brackets, and a pair of cams engage respectively said guide walls of each guide plate. An eye of the suspension arm is located between said two brackets, and a bolt extended through a through hole of one cam, respective slots of one guide plate and bracket passes through said eye and further respective slots of the other bracket and guide plate and the through hole of the other cam. In this case the through holes provided in said two cams are not completely circular, but formed to include a partially linear portion so that the relative positions of the linear portion and the profile of the cam are determined to align the phases of both cams when the linear portions of both holes coincide with each other. On the other hand, said bolt is provided on the outer periphery with a chord-shaped cut-out portion throughout the whole length of the bolt. This cut-out portion conforms to said linear portions of said both cams, so that both cams are rotated synchronously by rotating the bolt with their phases coinciding with each other. Accordingly, the adjustment of alignment is carried out by rotating the bolt to change the degree of engagement of the respective cams with the guide walls of the respective guide plates for moving the eye relatively to said pair of brackets.
After said adjustment a nut temporarily screwed to an end portion of the bolt is permanently fastened by an impact wrench. In this case, if the bolt is rotated to carry out the fastening of bolt and nut, both cams are rotated, so that not only specially performed adjustment becomes useless, but also original function of adjusting alignment is not achieved at all. Hence, it is needed to turn the nut with the bolt fixed. Thus, a space for preventing the bolt from abutting against any obstacles when the bolt is put in and out is needed outside one bracket, and outside the other bracket is needed a space to dispose an impact wrench.
As apparent from the aforementioned, the use of said alignment ajusting device needs a space occupied originally by this alignment adjusting device plus the space for putting in and out the bolt and the space for disposing the impact wrench, so that said alignment adjusting device could not be used in a small space.